<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Through it all, you were there by honestmischief</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28414440">Through it all, you were there</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestmischief/pseuds/honestmischief'>honestmischief</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>5+1 Things, Angst, Blood and Injury, Drowning, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Nightmares that feel real, Paralysis, Tony Stark Has Nightmares, Torture</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 17:54:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>607</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28414440</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestmischief/pseuds/honestmischief</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Five times Tony felt like he was dying + one time he did not.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>58</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Bucky Barnes Bingo 2020, Tony Stark Bingo Mark IV</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Through it all, you were there</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Thank you so much to Ducky who read this over, encouraged me, and helped me with the title and summary. </p><p>This small little fic came to me in the middle of the night last night, and I literally wrote it at 1:30 in the morning. Funny how that happens, huh?</p><p>Tony Stark Bingo<br/>Title of Fill: Through it all, you were there<br/>Collaborator: honestmischief<br/>Card Number: 4075<br/>Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28414440<br/>Square Filled: R1: Writing Format: 5 Things<br/>Ship/Main Pairing: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark<br/>Rating: Mature<br/>Major Tags/Warnings/Triggers: Nightmares, drowning, blood and injury, torture<br/>Summary: Five times Tony felt like he was dying + one time he did not.<br/>Word Count: 607</p><p>Bucky Barnes Bingo<br/>Title of Fill: Through it all, you were there<br/>Collaborator: Kate<br/>Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28414440<br/>Square Filled: B5: Pain<br/>Ship/Main Pairing: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark<br/>Rating: Mature<br/>Major Tags/Warnings/Triggers: Nightmares, drowning, blood and injury, torture<br/>Summary: Five times Tony felt like he was dying + one time he did not.<br/>Word Count: 607</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Tony is bleeding. His white shirt is turning red. His ears are ringing. He thinks that he’s dying, is sure that he’s dying.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tries to get up, but he is frozen. His breathing is quickening as he struggles to breathe. His own missile has betrayed him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s bleeding. He doesn’t know if he’s breathing. His vision fades to black.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His sight returns. He sees the lamp on his nightstand and concerned blue eyes beside him. Tony would hide under his blanket if he could move. Bucky asks if he’s okay, but he can’t answer. Bucky puts a blanket over him and lies next to him. Tony isn’t bleeding. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tony is drowning. His lungs are burning, his chest is heaving, and no air is getting in. He thinks that he’s dying, is sure that he’s dying. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tries to open his eyes, but he can’t see anything. He’s under water, until someone grabs him by his arm and pulls him back to the surface. He has just enough time to take one breath before he is pushed back down again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s drowning. He doesn’t know if he’s breathing. He’s sinking. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Except he’s not. Tony’s shaken awake, back to the present, back to reality. Instead of water, he sees blue eyes. Bucky lies next to him, holds his hand, and whispers reassurances into his ear. Tony isn’t drowning. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tony is suffocating. There’s a hole in his chest. He’s paralyzed. There’s shrapnel moving closer and closer to his heart. He thinks that he’s dying, is sure that he’s dying. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He crawls to his workshop after regaining some feeling in his arms and legs. He tries to find the arc reactor encased in glass. He can’t live without a heart. It’s getting harder to breathe.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s suffocating. He doesn’t know if he’s breathing. He can’t move.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tony gasps for air. He surveys his surroundings. He’s in bed. Bucky shifts closer to him, resting his head on Tony’s chest, listening to his heartbeat. Tony has a heart, and he isn’t suffocating.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tony is floating. All he can see is fire. Explosions of Chitauri ships cloud his vision. Tony is forced to watch, unable to move. He thinks that he’s dying, is sure that he’s dying. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s running out of oxygen in his suit. There’s a portal back to Earth behind him, but he can’t get there. There’s no gravity. He can’t move. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s floating. He doesn’t know if he’s breathing. He closes his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tony opens his eyes. He’s in his bedroom, and no longer in Space. Bucky kisses his cheek, grounding him back to Earth. Bucky tells him that he’s okay, that he’s not going anywhere. He says that Tony will stay with him. Tony isn’t floating. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tony is burning. He’s not engulfed by flames, but Pepper is as she falls down into the fire. His heart is pounding. He thinks that he’s dying, is sure that he’s dying. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He doesn’t feel alive as she falls to her death. The air is thick and hot. There’s fire everywhere, and it’s hard for him to catch his breath. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s burning. He doesn’t know if he’s breathing. He can’t move. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tony is no longer in Miami. He’s in New York and in his bed. Bucky wraps his arms around him and the cold metal of his prosthesis cools him down. Bucky’s lips are cool as they press against Tony’s forehead. Tony isn’t burning. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tony is resting. There’s no pain. He can breathe. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wakes up calmly, feeling his eyes flutter open as sunlight peaks through the curtains. Bucky is beside him. He always is. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You okay?” Bucky asks softly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Perfect,” Tony replies. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for reading :)</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>